Gaelle Colas, a graduate of TIF’s Take Stock in Children program, is currently a freshman at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. Gaelle took a few minutes to give us 15 interesting insights into the life of a student at Smith.

1. “My first semester in college was good.”
2. “Academically, one of the best.”
3. “Classes very small — no boys for distractions!”
4. “Can speak to the professors after class if there are any questions."
5. “Each class is assigned a tutor that works with students who are having trouble comprehending the class material.”
6. “The weather is not as bad you would think. Big Jackets!”
7. “Instead of dorms, we actually live in houses. Most first years actually live in singles but I chose to live in a double.”
8. “My roommate is from Virginia, and though we are complete opposites, we get along very well.”
9. “In each house, first years get a ‘big sib’ who is supposed to guide you in your first-year experience.”
10. “Smith offers 16 dining options for students.”
11. “My house actually has its own dining hall with three other adjacent dining halls. So I can eat, let’s say, pizza at my house and go to the next house and get ice cream.”
12. “The Smith career development office also helps students with future internships and bring Smith alumnae to talk to students about their careers after graduating from Smith.”
13. “The boy thing stinks but luckily we are allowed to take classes at the other four nearby colleges including Amherst College, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Hampshire College, and Mount Holyoke College. Boys are also allowed to take classes at Smith.”
14. “We are also allowed to attend any social events at the other four colleges and it’s only a bus ride away.”
15. “I’ve enjoyed the academics at Smith but what I really enjoy are the great friends I made.”